Elba is 0-4 against Central Valley since January of 2016 but things could change on Thursday. The Elba Bluejays will take on the Central Valley Cougars in a holiday battle at at 7:30 p.m. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
Elba is headed into Thursday's game looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their 23rd straight game dating back to last season on Friday. They took a blow against Silver Lake, falling 70-25. The Bluejays were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 44-8.
Elba's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Ethan Lange, who posted 15 points and three steals, and Garrett Wells, who earned seven points and five rebounds. That was a full 60% of Elba's points, marking the third time in a row he's put up more than a third of the team's points.
Meanwhile, Central Valley was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Tuesday as they fell 49-43 to Centura. The contest marked the Cougars' lowest-scoring matchup so far this season.
Elba will need focus on slowing down Zaden Wolf, one of several Central Valley players who made an impact when they last played. He almost dropped a double-double on 12 points and nine boards. Another player making a difference was Taesian Soto, who had ten points in addition to six boards and three steals.
Even though they lost, Central Valley smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in three consecutive games.
Elba's defeat dropped their record down to 0-3. As for Central Valley, their loss ended a six-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 3-2.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Elba has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 29.3 boards per game. However, it's not like Central Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.6 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Elba suffered a grim 56-30 defeat to Central Valley when the teams last played back in December of 2023. That contest was all but decided by halftime, at which point Elba was down 25-1.
